The Hamilton County Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC), under the auspices of Hamilton County Emergency Management, recently attended the Emergency Management Alliance of Indiana/Indiana Emergency Response Commission Joint Conference where the group received five awards. Recognized for its outstanding performance, the group was awarded in the categories of Planning a Hazardous Materials Exercise, Facility Outreach projects, Community Outreach projects, Contribution to the Indiana Emergency Response Commission and the Shelter in Place video.
The LEPC is an all-volunteer organization comprised of members of law enforcement, firefighting, healthcare, public health, communications, emergency management, elected state and local government, media, local environmental, transportation, facilities and community groups. Primary charges of the LEPC are to ensure that residents and workers in Hamilton County are aware and informed of their right to know what chemicals are being stored, used, released and discarded and to facilitate public requests for information as required by these laws. These charges are carried out by developing an emergency response plan to deal with accidental chemical releases from Title III facilities in Hamilton County and by making available to the general public chemical information submitted by those facilities. The LEPCs are funded through the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) under Indiana Code (IC) 6-10.
More information on the Hamilton County LEPC is available at hamiltoncounty.in.gov/575/Local-Emergency-Planning-Committee.